Conference – 1st part: »MIGRATION. WHAT DESIGN(ERS) CAN DO?«This session is organised by designaustria, a BEDA European Centre of Competence within the framework of the European Design Business Dialogue.

SPEAKERS 1st part:Michael Leube (A/E): ALL LIFE IS SIGNALING As the main tenet of biosemiotics states, everything that occurs in the universe is a semiotic event. All things - whether alive or not- are seen as signaling entities to the eye of the beholder. Homo sapiens s a highly cooperative yet hierarchical species and individuals mark their position in society by designing the way they live, look, and by what they carry around. In current times, when human cultures are becoming intermixed like never before, misinterpreted signals often result in xenophobia and violence. If design is communicative, than its aims should be clarity and understanding.

Erwin Bauer (A): ONE CANNOT NOT ACT „One cannot not communicate“: What Paul Watzlawick said about communication, can also be applied to our (political) actions. Even more so designers with their moderating, communicating and creative role: With every new project, they have a concrete chance to take a stand and develop aspirational solutions for current (social) challenges. Especially in these days, taking action for a civil society is more important than ever. Referential examples of modern design history show, that designers such as Otto & Marie Neurath, Ken Garland, Corita Kent or Victor Papanek already thought and acted with a big vision for positive, political change – being an inspiration for proactive actions today. So let’s act now!